Ammonia extraction process

Claim 1

IN A PROCESS FOR SEPARATING A MINERAL OIL INTO RELATIVELY MORE AND RELATIVELY LESS EXTRACTABLE COMPONENTS CONTAINING DIFFERENT CHEMICAL CONSTITUENTS BY CONTACTING SAID OIL AT A TEMPERATURE BETWEEN ABOUT 60 AND 150* F. WITH A LIQUID SOLVENT COMPRISING PREDOMINANTLY AMMONIA AND CAPABLE OF FORMING A RAFFINATE PHASE COMPOSED PREDOMINANTLY OF THE RELATIVELY LESS EXTRACTABLE OIL COMPONENTS AND AN EXTRACT PHASE CONTAINING NOT MORE THAN ABOUT 25% OF THE RELATIVELY MORE EXTRACTABLE COMPONENTS UNDER THE CONDITIONS OF EXTRACTION, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES WITHDRAWING SAID EXTRACT PHASE, COOLING SAID EXTRACT PHASE TO A TEMPERATURE BELOW ABOUT 20* F. AND LOW ENOUGH TO PRECIPITATE AT LEAST ABOUT 90% OF THE DISSOLVED HYDROCARBONS FROM THE AMMONIA SOLVENT, AND REMOVING THE RESULTING REGENERATED AMMONIA SOLVENT FROM THE PRECIPITATED HYDROCARBON EXTRACT.